Neymar, Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi celebrate a goal in Barcelona's Champions League win over Arsenal on Wednesday night. Andreu Dalmau / EPA / March 16, 2016
Neymar, Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi celebrate a goal in Barcelona's Champions League win over Arsenal on Wednesday night. Andreu Dalmau / EPA / March 16, 2016
Neymar, Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi celebrate a goal in Barcelona's Champions League win over Arsenal on Wednesday night. Andreu Dalmau / EPA / March 16, 2016
Neymar, Luis Suarez and Lionel Messi celebrate a goal in Barcelona's Champions League win over Arsenal on Wednesday night. Andreu Dalmau / EPA / March 16, 2016

Gulf in class: Barcelona, on to treble, a world from Arsenal at trophyless abyss


Andy Mitten
  • English
  • Arabic

Barcelona 3 Arsenal 1 (5-1 aggregate)

It doesn’t rain, it pours.

What was true in the usually dry city of Barcelona last night is also true of Arsenal since they were beaten by the Catalan side in London three weeks ago in the Champions League last 16 first leg. While Barca had won all four games since and extended their winning run to 37 games, Arsenal had lost three of their last five matches, been eliminated from the FA Cup and slipped 11 points behind Leicester at the top of the Premier League.

In Camp Nou, 37 became 38 as Barcelona defeated the Gunners 3-1 and 5-1 on aggregate. Many of the 5,000 travelling Arsenal supporters expected it. They had been evident on the streets of Barcelona in the days before the game and they filled the city’s metro system, telling locals that Arsene Wenger was not the man to take them forward.

One fan even tried to broker a deal with an amused Catalan.

“Look, let us win 1-0 and then you still go through,” said the fan, who joined his comrades on the uncovered upper tier to get soaked.

Barcelona last week announced plans to remodel their famous, but ageing, stadium. It will be fully covered and seat 105,000 by 2019, but that was little consolation to the visiting fans watching their season fall apart. At least Arsenal had a go.

Read more: Arsenal hysterics finally feel justified, as Arsene Wenger's almost-success finally feels unacceptable, writes Richard Jolly

Also see: Forget attacking flair. Barcelona and Spanish clubs are dominating Europe with defence, writes Ian Hawkey

Barca started well and as they moved through their gears, Neymar hit a long diagonal pass to Lionel Messi after 17 minutes. The Argentine controlled it with one touch and shot before David Ospina saved. The Camp Nou crowd always comes alive with independence chants after 17 minutes and they had more reason to make noise when sloppy Arsenal defending saw them lose possession.

Top scorer Luis Suarez hit a side foot pass forward through the Arsenal defence, which Neymar controlled and turned the ball past Ospina for his 26th goal of the season.

Arsenal were missing some of their best players including Jack Wilshere, Petr Cech, Santi Cazorla and Aaron Ramsey and it initially showed. They were poor and susceptible not only to through balls in open play, but from long balls over the top of defenders. Ospina’s alertness kept the score down on the slippery surface and yet while Barca were unrelenting, Arsenal did have several chances.

Mesut Ozil had blazed a shot wide from outside the area after nine minutes after Sergio Busquets, a man who does not lose possession, lost possession.

The under fire Wenger, who had justified his longevity and achievements at Arsenal in the pre-match press conference, appealed for a penalty after 35 minutes when Alex Iwobi appeared to be tripped by Javier Mascherano. Replays showed that the 19-year-old Nigerian probably tripped himself.

Iwobi blazed another shot over two minutes later while Alexis Sanchez headed just wide a minute after. Arsenal’s chances were not limited to the first half and they equalised six minutes after the break with Mohamed Elneny’s first goal for the club

The Egyptian’s finish was superb as he bent a pass from Sanchez around Marc-Andre ter Stegen after 51 minutes.

Arsenal had gone out at the last 16 stage in each of the last five seasons and were clear favourites to be eliminated again after the first leg defeat, but they were much improved in front of the 76,092 crowd as the match went on.

Ospina kept them in the game, while Danny Welbeck could have been cuter when he had only Mascherano, who did not have the suspended Gerard Pique alongside him, to beat on the hour. He took a touch too many and another chance was lost.

Barca were always dangerous but Arsenal defended well in the second period and worked up threatening forward positions as they pressured their opponents. Luis Enrique, who enjoys a winning ratio of 81 per cent as Barca boss, stood concerned on the sidelines, lacking the easy assuredness he had showed in the first half.

He relaxed after 63 minutes when Suarez, who’d had a quiet night, volleyed a Dani Alves cross with the bottom of his shin for his 43rd goal of the season.

Welbeck hit the top of the bar, Sanchez drew another save from Ter Stegen with a free-kick after 79 minutes and Arsenal’s sodden fans responded with a chant of ‘Oh, Arsenal we love you’. They were still singing when Lionel Messi chipped Barca’s third three minutes from time.

The night’s scoreline was harsh on Arsenal, but the 5-1 aggregate score underlined the gulf in class. Messi’s goal meant one each for Barca’s big three strikers on the night as they move towards retaining their treble.

Arsenal will likely finish the season trophyless.

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  • George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
  • Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
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RESULTS

6.30pm Handicap (TB) $68,000 (Dirt) 1,200m

Winner Canvassed, Par Dobbs (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer)

7.05pm Meydan Cup – Listed Handicap (TB) $88,000 (Turf) 2,810m

Winner Dubai Future, Frankie Dettori, Saeed bin Suroor

7.40pm UAE 2000 Guineas – Group 3 (TB) $125,000 (D) 1,600m

Winner Mouheeb, Ryan Curatolo, Nicholas Bachalard

8.15pm Firebreak Stakes – Group 3 (TB) $130,000 (D) 1,600m

Winner Secret Ambition, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar

9.50pm Meydan Classic – Conditions (TB) $$50,000 (T) 1,400m

Winner Topper Bill, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar

9.25pm Dubai Sprint – Listed Handicap (TB) $88,000 (T) 1,200m

Winner Man Of Promise, William Buick, Charlie Appleby

Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

Temple numbers

Expected completion: 2022

Height: 24 meters

Ground floor banquet hall: 370 square metres to accommodate about 750 people

Ground floor multipurpose hall: 92 square metres for up to 200 people

First floor main Prayer Hall: 465 square metres to hold 1,500 people at a time

First floor terrace areas: 2,30 square metres  

Temple will be spread over 6,900 square metres

Structure includes two basements, ground and first floor 

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ELIO

Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett

Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina

Rating: 4/5

Tips to stay safe during hot weather
  • Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
  • Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
  • Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
  • Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
  • Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
  • Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
  • Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Power: 510hp at 9,000rpm
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Price: From Dh801,800
The five pillars of Islam

1. Fasting

2. Prayer

3. Hajj

4. Shahada

5. Zakat 

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Key recommendations
  • Fewer criminals put behind bars and more to serve sentences in the community, with short sentences scrapped and many inmates released earlier.
  • Greater use of curfews and exclusion zones to deliver tougher supervision than ever on criminals.
  • Explore wider powers for judges to punish offenders by blocking them from attending football matches, banning them from driving or travelling abroad through an expansion of ‘ancillary orders’.
  • More Intensive Supervision Courts to tackle the root causes of crime such as alcohol and drug abuse – forcing repeat offenders to take part in tough treatment programmes or face prison.

Tuesday results:

  • Singapore bt Malaysia by 29 runs
  • UAE bt Oman by 13 runs
  • Hong Kong bt Nepal by 3 wickets

Final:
Thursday, UAE v Hong Kong

The specs

Engine: Four electric motors, one at each wheel

Power: 579hp

Torque: 859Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh825,900

On sale: Now

The 10 Questions
  • Is there a God?
  • How did it all begin?
  • What is inside a black hole?
  • Can we predict the future?
  • Is time travel possible?
  • Will we survive on Earth?
  • Is there other intelligent life in the universe?
  • Should we colonise space?
  • Will artificial intelligence outsmart us?
  • How do we shape the future?
Jetour T1 specs

Engine: 2-litre turbocharged

Power: 254hp

Torque: 390Nm

Price: From Dh126,000

Available: Now

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets